Earth-Empire War
by Dairene
Summary: Earth of the future is thick with tension- a New Cold War threatens the peace. A new nation, built on the sea- the Terran Socialist Republic, allied with China and Russia, threaten US and Western influence. However, powerful, vast, interstellar empire from beyond the Milky Way has set its sights on Earth, yet their desire for conquest is mixed with deeper, hidden plots...


Prologue 02:32 A.M. Hong Kong Time, Hong Kong…

A trio of Imperial stormtroopers that had spent months training for this specific mission, now perched treacherously atop the roof of large a hotel complex.

"Alright, from now on, we will be in range of enemy surveillance, so be ready for an ambush at any moment. Don't relax a moment until we get back to the safety of our cloaked shuttle!"

"Got it, DV-523," TK-421 complained. "We all know you're the most experienced, but do you need to keep reminding us?"

"Roger that," TK-422 echoed.

"Just shut up- " DV-523 turned away from the two. "- and follow me!" He attached his grappling hook to the roof and rappelled down to the 26th floor and blasted his way through the broad glass window. The other two followed after him and slipped into the hotel room. The woman lying in the bed bolted upright, then, remembering she was clad only in underwear, squeaked and covered herself with bedsheets.

"Captain Rasha Bex, do you have the documents?" DV-523 inquired authoritatively.

"Y-Yes, s-sir- But they'll be on their way- "

"Let's go, then!"

"You don't understand, they've been tailing me for days- "

"We have a shuttle on the roof." DV-523 tossed a comm link, blaster, and a grappling hook.

"Alright, let me get dressed." Rasha scrambled to the dresser.

No sooner had she opened the drawer, however, the door burst open and heavily-armed Special Duties officers of the Hong Kong Police burst in. "Don't move! Police!"

TK-422 swung around to fire, but was cut down immediately by rifle fire. TK-421 ducked behind an alcove and fired potshots at the intruders.

"Captain, go!" DV-523 shouted as he crouched behind a sofa and fired madly.

Rasha somersaulted over the bed and yanked the blankets to the ground, bringing the blaster, comlink, and grappling hook down with it. She hurled the comlink into the maelstrom of gunfire and the police retreated frantically in the hall, mistaking it for a grenade. Clutching the tow cable in one hand, firing at the doorway with the other, she ran to the sofa where DV-523 crouched. "What do we do now, Stormtrooper?"

"Get outta here, we'll cover you!" DV-523 bellowed.

Rasha hesitated, but before she could reply, TK-421 peered out of his alcove, blaster still firing in the general direction of the police, shouted, "Are you crazy, boss? We need to extrac- " Bullets struck the stormtrooper's helmet in midsentence, and he collapsed, spilling blood on the carpet.

"Run!" DV-523 repeated urgently, and this time, Rasha wasted no time in launching her grappling hook and rappelling up to the windowsill of the floor above.

"Come on, Stormtrooper!"

"Leave me! I'll hold them off, you run fo- AUGHHH!" There was a loud crashing sound and the gunfire ceased abruptly.

Rasha scrambled up to a firmer, but still precarious perch and launched her grappling hook all the way to the top floor. Scrambling over the edge, she shouted to the Lambda shuttle, "Prepare to take off! Hostile forces are on their way!"

As she scrambled aboard the shuttle, the pilot asked her, "Captain Bex? Where's the troopers?"

"They gave their lives for the Empire!" Rasha shouted. "Hurry!"

The roof searchlights flashed on, and Special Duties Officers stormed onto the roof, and helicopters began to converge on the hotel from a distance. The Lambda shuttle gunned its repulsorlift engines and activated its cloaking shield, disappearing into the night sky before the Earthlings' very eyes. On board, Rasha sat back and relaxed for the first time in weeks. The Stormtroopers who had lost their lives this night would never be forgotten- she would make sure they would be memorialized as the first Imperial soldiers to be martyred in this new war. For with the end of this last mission with Imperial Intelligence, it would be only a matter of hours before war erupted. Order and justice would be established.

The shuttle soared into orbit of the sixth planet, Saturn, where, behind the moon Enceladus, the cloaked Imperial Star Destroyer, _Gorgon_, awaited. As soon as the shuttle landed in the hangar and the ramp was lowered, Rasha saw a squad of Dark Honor Guards, elite soldiers mentally-bonded to the Emperor, and she knew the situation was serious.

"We're here to escort you to bridge, ma'am."

Rasha knew that was not a request.

Minutes later, she saw that Admiral Natasi Daala, commander of the impending invasion fleet of Earth, was on deck to greet her, one of the few female officers to claw her way up the misogynistic Imperial hierarchy to command not just her own ship, but a battle fleet.

"Captain Bex," the Admiral greeted in a voice that was not unkind, but carried with it a cold strength. "I am glad to see another woman serving the Empire in an officer position. You are also the last intelligence agent to be picked up."

"I- I am honored to meet you, ma'am," Rasha stammered nervously. "I'm always happy to serve."

"Excellent, Captain. Be at ease. I'll only take up a few minutes and you can be on your way." The Admiral walked over to a central command computer and opened a recording file. "My fleet will enter combat with Earth in a few hours. While our targets have already been set by High Command, I still want to know a little about the political situation on Earth. And we both know the Intelligence reports take weeks…"

"So you want me to tell you about the political situation on Earth, ma'am?"

"If it doesn't interfere with your mission or with Intelligence confidentiality."

"Not at all, ma'am. Of course I can tell you about it. Where should I start?"

"Tell me about the planetary government, its security forces, its economy. Are their rebels against their government?"

"Earth is composed of 205 independent nations, of which 195 owe allegiance to a planetary authority called the United Nations or UN. But the UN is very weak, with little real power," Rasha began skimming through her report on her datapad.

"Sounds a bit like Renatasia before the Empire discovered it," Daala muttered. "Sorry, my name is Renatasian- my parents' choice. Go on."

"Five powerful nations pretty much run the United Nations- the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the French Republic, the Russian Federation, and the People's Republic of China. In addition, the Terran Socialist Republic or TSR, a powerful maritime nation which does not answer to the UN, is a major player. There is intense rivalry between the first two nations, along with their allies, organized in the World Security Treaty Organization or WSTO- and the latter three nations plus the TSR, along with their allies, organized in the Alliance for the Liberation of Sovereign Nations or ALSN. Nations frequently defect from side to side, and some nations are very neutralistic, choosing to be part of both alliances or choosing not to join either. If a nation joins both alliances, they only participate on a defensive basis with each. Though there are no large-scale planetary wars between the major powers, proxy wars, coups, subterfuge, and destabilization are endemic. Oh, and each country has its own military and police, of course- nations are highly suspicious of each other, even allies. The economy is entirely self-contained- in fact, they are barely capable of spaceflight. The farthest their manned flights have ever traveled is to their moon. Their manned missions have not even reached the neighboring planets in the system- though primitive probe droids have. Of course, hyperspace capability is nonexistent."

The Admiral checked her chronometer and turned off the recorder. "Apologies, Captain. I have to cut it short. The preparations for war require my attention. I appreciate your input."

"Well, anyway, good luck. There's nothing a good orbital bombardment of Earth won't do in putting the primitives in line, ma'am"

"That's the weird thing, Captain," Admiral Daala frowned. "I was under struck orders not to utilize orbital bombardment- Grand Moff Tarkin said the orders came directly from the Emperor himself. This forces me to engage on the ground- this is why your intel may be more important than you think. Anyway, I have a shuttle for you back to Imperial Center. Best of luck in your endeavours."

"Thank you, Admiral."


End file.
